NY Finger Lakes suggestions

[michigan_buckey]

Hi All,

I'm planning a trip to the Finger Lakes area for a week in July with my wife and 11 yo daughter. We'll be in our 30' motor home with car in tow. We plan to stay at Watkins Glen State Park for sure but are debating if we should split up the week at a different CG too. We're into wine, beer, cheese, and all of the other local flavor. Should we split the week at two campgrounds or can we stay entertained doing day trips out of Watkins Glen for the whole week? Please suggest a second campground if that's your thought. Public or private doesn't really matter, just need electricity as a minimum.

Thanks.

[njdirt]

Another to consider is Canadaigua. Nice KOA that we spent Labor day week in Farmingdale 5 miles from the north end of lake. Lots of wines/Beers and history there 2 see there.

[Salty_Dog]

We live nearby on the easy side of Cayuga Lake. Make reservations as early as you can once you decide when and where. Watkins Glen State Park is really nice but it's site are on the small side. There are a number of CG's to choose from. Sampson is an old naval base from WWII, my wife's uncle trained there. There are many more wineries than you can visit in a week and some of the better ones are the small ones. Watkins Glen International Speedway hosts the Finger Lakes Wine Festival in mid July. They offer camping on the track grounds. Last year over 80 vineyards were represented, along with local breweries and distillers and cheese producers. That area will be very busy during that time period. Good luck, Mike

[Steve_B_]

I camped over at Sampson in September and from there did some of the Cayuga Lake wineries. Very nice afternoon, many wonderful wineries to visit, great views. I live in the Finger Lakes area (Naples area) and highly recommend spending some time here. I enjoy Watkns Glen State Park, but agree that Sampson has some nicer sites as all have at least electric and WG only has one loop with electric. You should also visit Hammondsport, and see Cayuga Lake. We have a lot to offer here.

[NJ6PACK]

X2 on what D&M said.....saved me a lot of typing 🙂 basically did the same this past August

From Hickory Hill CG also visit Mount Morris Dam, They give tours of the Dam you won't be dissapointed. From the Dam visit letchworth State Park. It has many great waterfalls, it calles itself The Grand Canyon of the east

One thing that D&M mentioned about visiting Hammondsport.....its a nice town to visit my wife liked it but my oldest son and I noticed that it looked like the town of Woodbury fom the TV show THE WALKING DEAD.....we kept expecting the ZOMBIES to show up!

[D___M]

Just got back from a really nice weekend in the Finger Lakes. I do Columbus Day weekend every year. The leaves were at their peak and the weather was perfect.

I base camped at Hickory Hill RV Resort in Bath, NY. Lots for the daughter to do. And the wife may enjoy what the spa has to offer. You can check the link to see what they offer.

Hickory Hill is 8 miles south of the base of Keuka Lake, the second biggest Finger lake. The town of Hammondsport sits at the base of the lake. There are several nice restaurants/bars in the town, the Union Block Italian and the Snug Harbor Restaurant amoung them. There are several wineries along the trail, but the two I really enjoy are Heron Hill and Bully Hill.

Bath is about 35 miles from Watkins Glen NY.. I highly recommend that you hike the gorge trail in Watkins Glen State Park. Hint: Pay the 3 bucks and let the shuttle take you to the top of the trail. Gravity is your friend.

From there you can hit the Seneca Lake wine trail. If you have time you can have cocktail or dinner at the historic Seneca Lodge. It was built in 1947 and was a mainstay for race car drivers and crews when they ran the Grand Prix races in the streets of Watkins Glen

[Norskeman]

michigan buckeye wrote:
Hi All,

I'm planning a trip to the Finger Lakes area for a week in July with my wife and 11 yo daughter. We'll be in our 30' motor home with car in tow. We plan to stay at Watkins Glen State Park for sure but are debating if we should split up the week at a different CG too. We're into wine, beer, cheese, and all of the other local flavor. Should we split the week at two campgrounds or can we stay entertained doing day trips out of Watkins Glen for the whole week? Please suggest a second campground if that's your thought. Public or private doesn't really matter, just need electricity as a minimum.

Thanks.

We are close to the region and camp allot in the Finger Lakes area. When you go out for the day - take a lunch because many of the wineries have a great view of the lake and have space for you to eat your lunch

Watkins Glen State Park will be tight in some sites with a 30' motor home. Recommend Sampson (all have electric), Keuka (1/2 the sites have electric) and some on Cayuga (east side has electric) state parks. Sampson will give you good access to Seneca and Cayuga lakes. Keuka Lake will give you access to more wineries and a few micro breweries.

The 11 year old will be able to sample grape juice at the wineries and some of the micro breweries now make root beer or cream soda to sample.

You will need reservations for your time period and they can be made 9 months in advance.
http://newyorkstateparks.reserveamerica.com/

There were wine, cheese and beer "trails" in the area. Most wineries have a small fee to sample ($3-4). Some return the fee when you purchase wine.

http://www.senecalakewine.com/
http://cayugawinetrail.com/
http://www.keukawinetrail.com/

http://www.fingerlakesbeertrail.com/content/

http://www.flcheesetrail.com/

There is a good distillery on Seneca Lake and one on Cayuga Lake.
I prefer the Finger Lakes Distillery on Seneca Lake. Both have sampling for a small fee ($3-4)
http://fingerlakesdistilling.com/
http://www.myerfarmdistillers.com/products/


I can give you more info and suggested camp sites at the State Parks (except Watkins Glen - we have not stayed there in a long time - too hard to get a 35' fifth wheel in any of the sites).

[K_Charles]

Sampson State Park is nice.

[trailertraveler]

Both Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake have Winery tour routes. If you want to visit more than one of the Finger Lakes, you could move to another New York State Park. Toughannock Falls and Buttermilk Falls both have campgrounds and I am sure there are probably others in the Finger Lakes region.